Family Cultivation: My entire family are Villains

Chapter 398: 202, Hexi Prefecture (Please subscribe!)

Yue Wenzhu, Ke Jiangyun, and Gao Haicheng spoke up, immediately silencing the crowd below, whose attention was now fixed on the trio, with many faces flickering uncertainly.

"Gentlemen, you may now make your stance clear, to pay or not to pay, rest assured, as Master declared beforehand, you are free to choose, without any coercion, and those who do not wish to pay will face no blame from the Holy Church!"

The tone of Hou Yuduan was still even and composed, impossible to fault and bearing no trace of threat.

"With the Fifth Young Master's assurance, I am at ease. Our Huangshan Sect in Pinghu County truly lacks the funds, I hope for the Fifth Young Master's understanding!"

As Sect Master Qiu Liben of the Huangshan Sect spoke, many with wavering expressions turned their gaze towards Hou Yuduan, eager to gauge his reaction.

Yet upon hearing this, Hou Yuduan showed an understanding expression and nodded slightly with a smile, "It matters not, the Holy Church will hold no grudge against Sect Master Qiu."

The indifferent reaction from Hou Yuduan, once perceived by the crowd, fortified their decisions, and they began to state their positions one after another.

"The Qinghu Gang is willing to pay."

"The Hualing Sword Sect is also willing to pay."

"Golden Sword Sect of Yeyin County lacks the means, please forgive us, Fifth Young Master!"

"The Zhang Clan of Donglu County is willing to pay the ransom."

"Shuiyun Sect of Jinxiang County lacks the fiscal strength, I hope the Fifth Young Master understands."

...

Within a mere hundred or so breaths, all thirty-five second-rate forces had expressed their positions; Hou Yuduan surveyed the crowd and nodded, "Now that everyone has made their decisions, let us consider this first matter resolved."

"What's the second matter, Fifth Young Master, please continue!"

"Everyone, do not fret. If I haven't misremembered, there were a total of seven families who decided not to exchange money for people, namely: the Golden Sword Sect of Yeyin County, Shuiyun Sect of Jinxiang County, Huangshan Sect of Pinghu County, the Fan Family of Longxiang County, Dongning Escort Agency, Beichen Escort Agency of Yangping County, and the Feiyun Gang..."

As soon as Hou Yuduan began to recite the names of the forces, the leaders of those seven families started to show a change in expression, realizing that something was amiss.

The other twenty-some forces that had agreed to pay, although not named, were also puzzled as they watched Hou Yuduan, wondering why he was listing those seven families.

Hadn't it just been said that the Holy Church would not pursue the matter?

"Be at ease, as I've stated, the Holy Church will not assign blame, and there will be no trouble. However, for the next two matters, these seven families need not participate. Bring forth those named by me from the seven families to the upstairs rooms to rest!"

Suddenly, over a dozen Warriors of the Gang Qi Realm entered from outside, led by Nie Xinchuan and Liu Jianghong, who approached the seats of those seven families, extending a cordial invitation, "Please."

The leaders of the seven families, upon witnessing this scene, became uneasy, wanting to stand and say something, but Hou Yuduan gave them no chance to speak, merely releasing a hint of his Gang Qi Realm aura, which promptly silenced them.

"I am rather busy with numerous matters, and I hope the seven of you will not embarrass yourselves. Someone will discuss the details with you upstairs; please don't delay everyone's time here, let's go!"

Hou Yuduan's tone was no longer as cordial as before, and combined with his emitted aura, all seven quickly realized that the Fifth Young Master before them was a genuine Gang Qi Realm master, and immediately held their tongues.

"Fifth Young Master, I was short-sighted just now. Our Huangshan Sect is willing to pay the money, I implore you, give us another chance!"

On their way out, Sect Master Qiu Liben from Huangshan Sect, unwilling to give up, spoke to Hou Yuduan, hoping to change his mind, but to no avail; Hou Yuduan did not even glance at him, and he had no choice but to stiffly follow Nie Xinchuan and the others out of the hall.

Only after the seven groups had left did Hou Yuduan turn back to address the crowd, his expression becoming amiable again.

"This second matter is what everyone is most concerned about: it's about how the Holy Church plans to manage the Hexi Three Counties!"

At this statement, the crowd's interest was immediately piqued.

"The Holy Church offers two options for the Hexi Three Counties. The first option: to be incorporated into the Yongzhou Xingnan Prefecture and become three new counties under its jurisdiction. Once this war is over, you second-rate forces must undergo a new assessment from Xingnan Prefecture and receive a decree from the Holy Church to become official second-rate forces within the bounds of Yongzhou, entitled to the same treatment as other forces recognized by Yongzhou!"

After the first option was presented, every person below showed a look of resistance, with hardly an exception.

Previously, while the Hexi Three Counties were part of Xuzhou Guangling Prefecture, they were in practice somewhat out of reach due to the Tongtian River separating them from the other six counties, resulting in a great degree of autonomy for these counties.

Firstly, incorporation into Xingnan Prefecture meant that they would lose this autonomy and be subjected to a variety of controls from the higher levels;

Secondly, after joining Xingnan Prefecture, they would have to undergo a new evaluation and receive a decree from the Holy Church to officially become recognized second-rate forces within Yongzhou—a process not only cumbersome but also involving greasing palms at the prefectural capital, an endeavor which would inevitably cost a hefty sum.

Given these combined factors, it was natural that none of the twenty-eight forces present would favor this first option. Yet, they did not vocally reject it either and continued to wait for Hou Yuduan to reveal the second choice.

The reaction of the crowd was, of course, expected by Hou Yuduan. A glint flashed in his eyes as he smiled and said, "The second option is for the Hexi Three Counties, together with Tongling County, to establish a new prefecture centered around these four counties, named Hexi Prefecture. The Prefectural Governor of Hexi Prefecture shall be elected by us from the Hexi Four Counties. Besides establishing a Prison Admin Department, the Holy Church will not set up any other agencies. The entire prefecture will decide its governance, with the Holy Church promising not to intervene as long as taxes are paid as usual!"